Elastic heel.



R. E. FOSTER &' PRATT.

BLASTIG H y IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII 9.

9'?3,026 Patented Oct. 18,1910.

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FOSTER RUBBER COMPANY, MAINE.

RoLoN E. FOSTER AND PHILIP W. PRATT, oF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, AssIGNoRs To OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION 0F ELASTIC HEEL.

Speccation of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 18, 1910.

Application filed December 4, 1909. Serial No. 531,336.

To all whom 'it may concern.'

Be it known that we, RoLoN E. FOSTER and PHILIP W. PRATT, of Boston, in lthe county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Elastic Heels, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to boot and shoe heels, made of elastic material such as rubber, and the invention has particular reference to heels having a form adapted to serve as a support for the arch of the foot.

The object of the invention is to provide a non-Slipping and elastic heel tread which has an integral projection from one side of the usual breast line, the said forward pro, jection being provided with a plug of suitable material which will make the said forward projection suiiiciently less elastic than the body of the heel so that the said projection, although formed `of a generally elastic material, will still -provide sufficient support Yto prevent what is known as a breaking down of the arch of the foot.

To these ends the invention consists in the heel substantially as hereinafter described and claimed.4

Of the accompanying drawings,-Figure l is an under plan. Fig. 2 is a top plan. Fig. 3 represents a section on line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 represents a front elevation of the heel. i

Similar reference characters indicate the same or similar parts in all of the views.

The body 10 of the heel is shown as having a thickness to adapt it to servo as an entire heel. But it is to be understood that, if it is applied to a heel having leather lifts of the same general shape as in the present drawings, that is, with a forward projection, the said body 10 may be only what is termed a half heel that is, a body having a thickness of, say, one or two leather lifts.

The forward projection 11, is integral Withthe body 10, and has molded therein a plug 12 which may be of any preferred shape, and which may be of any sultable material to reduce the resilience of the sald plug 12 is intended to illustrate a structure such as claimed in the application 501,748, filed June 12, 1909, by Phill W. Pratt.

The heel may be provi ed with one or more additional plugs 13 at the rear `of said heel, these last mentioned plugs serving the usual purpose of preventing slipping. iOf course the plug l2 in the projection 11 also serves to prevent slipping. v As best shown in Fig. 4, the side of the heel having the projection 11 is thicker than the other side, and consequently the projection itself is thicker than the other side of the body of the heel, so as to rovide a better support for the arch of the oot.

We do not limit ourselves to the exact shape of the projection shown, as it may be considerably longer than illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2. But whether long or short, it is provided with a suitably shaped insertion or plug made of a material which is less elastic than the body of said projection. And said plug 12 may extend entirely` through the body from bottom to top or only part way as shown in the drawings. Of course, the heels are made rights and lefts. The one illustrated in the drawings is for a left shoe or boot.

Instead of providing an insertion or plug 12 exposed at the wear surface of the heel, it may be below such surface; that 1s, contained entirely within the body l0. Or 1t may extend rearward from the face of the projection, in which case 1t may be 1n the form of a wedge taperin rearwardly. And instead of being made of fabrican'd rubber, it may be of a rubber composition whlch, when the heel is vulcanized, will be harder than the rubber which incloses it. In fact, i

said body having an integral projection for- In testimony whereof we have affixed our wa'd from oneiside of thehusualibreast line signatures in presence of two witnesses.

to orm an are su ort, t e sai projection A having a greater nsverse thickness than that of the other side of the body of the heel, said projection having an insertion or Witnesses:

plu of material which is less elastic than C. F. BROWN,

the ody 'of said projection. A. W. HARRISON. 

